Thursday, November 8, 2012

Author Eliza Daly On Tour And A Giveaway

 
(Giveaway announcement: The winners of Eliza's giveaway have been selected. The winners are: Margaret Literary Chanteuse won the copy of UNDER HER SPELL and mushuu 17 won the $10 gift certificate. Thanks so much to all who participated.) 
 
One of the joys of blogging has been the opportunity to meet authors and learn more about how ideas become the books I love to read. One such author is the delightful Eliza Daly whose lighthearted debut romance, UNDER HER SPELL, was recently released by Crimson Romance.

Here’s a brief blurb of UNDER HER SPELL (on sale this week for only $1.99!):
When a series of failed relationships and business ventures have Monica Jackson doubting her self-worth, she turns to spell casting to attract positive energy and the opportunities needed to achieve her goals. But can Monica’s belief in spells restore her belief in herself?  

 
Monica creates a spell to find her soul mate, and one to ensure the success of her new romantic event planning company, Enhance Your Romance. Monica is confident she has found her niche until divorce lawyer Reed Walker opens a practice next door to her office. The anti-marriage slogan plastered on his office window, and his down-on-love clients, quickly prove detrimental to Monica’s business. When his arrival appears to trigger a string of bad luck, Monica fears one of her spells sent negative energy into the universe and it has returned to her threefold. Although Reed is beyond sexy, and she admires his self-confidence, she’ll do whatever it takes to get the universe back on her side, and Reed out of her life. No way is she losing another business. 


Reed finds himself attracted to Monica’s beauty and her optimism. His job and his parents’ divorce have made him a pessimist, especially when it comes to love. However, he soon finds that Monica’s pro-love attitude is rubbing off on him, causing him to lose his edge. If Reed doesn’t distance himself from Monica, he’ll likely destroy his reputation as a pit bull divorce lawyer. 


Can Monica and Reed look past what they might be losing to realize the love they have found?


Eliza joins us today and takes a different spin on the normal Q&A by interviewing herself. This way she gets to answer questions she’s been dying to answer, but no one has asked. In addition, she has a tantalizing giveaway for a lucky visitor.

I would like to thank Mason for helping me celebrate the release Under Her Spell Coverof my debut romantic comedy, UNDER HER SPELL. I’m excited to be here today at Thoughts in Progress. I’ve conducted several interviews since my book was recently released, so to make an interview as fresh as possible, I decided to answer some questions I haven’t been asked. 

What are some unique book titles on your shelves?

* Alice et Les Chats Persans (Alice and the Persian Cats. My French isn’t great, but I bought it one time when I was in Paris because it had a cute cat on the cover.)
* French for Cats (I bought it in Savannah so my cats Quigley and Frankie could translate the previous book for me.)
* Talk to the Tail ‘Cause the Whiskers Ain’t Listenin’! (Story of my life. Are you seeing a pattern here?)
* The Definitive Guide to Underground Humor: Quaint Quotes about Death, Funny Funeral Home Stories, and Hilarious Headstone Epitaphs. (I love visiting cemeteries, especially in Ireland, even if I don’t know anyone buried there. I bought this book when writing an upcoming romantic comedy titled Thinking Outside the Box, in which the heroine plans themed funerals.)
* So Is He Gay? The Single Woman’s Guide to Whether He’d Make a Better Groom or Caterer at Your Wedding. (Bought it because the title made me laugh out loud in the store!)


What were the hardest and the easiest elements for you to learn about the craft of writing?

Dialogue came naturally for me. When I first started writing I could have written a book 100% in dialogue I enjoyed writing it so much. I maybe should have considered writing a screenplay instead of a book. The hardest thing for me to learn was writing conflict and tension. Probably because I avoid both in real life.

What does your office look like?

A retro groovy pad that Marsha Brady would die for. Easier to show than to tell, which is what all good writers strive to do. 

You wrote a book about spell casting, does this mean you believe in spells?

I believe in positive thinking and that believing strongly in a goal will help you achieve it. And that is the essence of spell casting. Do I actively cast spells? No, but I no longer believe they are merely a bunch of hocus pocus, like the movie with that same name suggests. (Although I must admit I love that movie.)

Do you have an English or creative writing degree?

I am often asked this question. Many people think this is true of writers. I would like to debunk that myth right now. A lot of writers I know write about what they know, or at least this is often the case early in their writing careers. Look at John Grisham, Patricia Cornwell, and Lisa Scottoline. They all wrote about their professions. I’m an event planner who travels, and I’ve written several books with event planner heroines and several set in Paris, my favorite city. The first book I wrote was a romantic comedy about a businesswoman who was stressed out from flying. Hmm…me? The book was actually very therapeutic.

What other types of books have you written?

I also write lighthearted women’s fiction and paranormal young adult. You can check out my YA book at www.bethwatson.net. I’m currently querying this book to agents along with a women’s fiction book set in Paris.

If you could temporarily move anywhere in the world while writing a book set there, where would it be?

My first reaction is to say Ireland, my favorite country, so I’m going to surprise everyone who knows me and say Monte Carlo. I could improve my French. Eat pain au chocolat for breakfast daily. Try a different local wine with dinner nightly… And of course, write. There’s an air of intrigue and romance about Monte Carlo that has always drawn me to the city. However, I’ll have to be a NYT bestselling author to afford to live there even temporarily.

You’ve mentioned that you love to travel. What’s the most unique picture you have of yourself while on vacation?

 A picture of me with two monkeys at a floating market in Thailand. I’d just stepped off a boat and a woman tossed these two monkeys at me and they started climbing all over me. I laughed until I started panicking about contracting some rare tropical disease. 

GIVEAWAY
I’ll be giving away a copy of my e-book UNDER HER SPELL (from Amazon, B&N, or Kobo) and a $10 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift certificate. Either leave your e-mail address with your comment or check back here November 11 for the winners’ names and instructions. Please ask me a question to be eligible to win one of these prizes. Please keep it PG13, or maybe even G.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by today. Please check out future stops on my blog tour, ending November 27. I’ll be giving away a variety of gifts. If you comment on 5 stops, and are a Facebook fan, you’ll be eligible to win one of two $25 Amazon or Barnes & Noble gift certificates at the end of my blog tour. Winners will be announced on my website’s news page the end of November. A December Holiday Giveaway for my readers will also be revealed at that time.

Eliza, thanks so much for joining us today. I so enjoyed your interview. I had never stopped to think that there were questions authors hadn’t been asked that they wished they had been. 

Now let me share a bit of background on Eliza. Her first attempt at creative writing was in fourth grade. She and her friends were huge Charlie’s Angels fans and she would sit in her bedroom at night writing scripts for them to act out at recess the following day. She was Kelly Garrett. Fast forward to the present, she’s still writing stories about beautiful women who always get their men. Eliza says the journey from fourth grade script writer to published author wasn’t an easy one, but it was always an adventure and the final destination was well worth it.

When Eliza isn’t traveling for her job as an event planner, or tracing her ancestry roots through Ireland, she’s at home in Milwaukee working on her next novel, bouncing ideas off her husband Mark, and her cats Quigley and Frankie.

For more about Eliza and her writing, you can check out her website, visit her on Facebook, find her on Twitter, and visit with her at Goodreads.

UNDER HER SPELL is available at Amazon (on sale this week for only $1.99!), iTunes, Google Play (Nook compatible) and Barnes & Noble (coming soon).

If you’re an author, what is one thing you’ve never been asked that you wish someone had asked? If you’re a reader, what one question you would like to ask your favorite author? Remember, be sure to ask Eliza a question for a chance to win one of the fun prizes she’s giving away. Thanks so much for stopping by today.

22 comments:

  1. Eliza, thanks again for joining us and sharing your wished you'd been asked questions and answers. I especially liked your take on living in Monte Carlo. Wishing you much success.

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  2. Hi, Eliza! The promise of monkeys brought me over - great picture!!! And I love the premise of your book...can't wait to read it!

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  3. Mason--Thanks again for having me here today and helping me celebrate the release of Under Her Spell!

    Kristina--I know how can you resist seeing a pic of me being attacked by monkeys? Thanks for stopping by!

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  4. Eliza the photo of you with the monkeys is great! I have just finished your book and it's awesome. Laugh out loud funny!

    Laura Iding

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  5. Thanks so much Laura! I'm so glad you enjoyed the book. Yay! Isn't the monkey pic awesome? I have it framed in my living room. Quite the conversation piece. :-)

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  6. This books sounds very good! I like the lighter side of young adult rather than the heavy paranormal stories. Thanks for the giveaway!

    Margaret
    singitm(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  7. OMG! I burst out laughing at your book title, So Is He Gay? This is why gay marriage has to be legal in this country. These guys have such taste and flair, you can't ban them from sharing in the fun too.

    If your personality comes out in your books, you'll have people looking to gobble up your next release. Congratulations. Terrific premise!

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  8. Thanks so much Margaret. My YA story is quite light considering it's paranormal and two of the characters are dead. :-) Thanks for stopping!

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  9. I know Tara isn't that an awesome title? I laughed in the store. I love quirky books. And thanks so much for the compliment. That's so sweet. A client of mine just read Under Her Spell and she said she could totally hear my dry and sarcastic voice throughout the book so I think it does sound like me which I hope is a good thing. :-) Thanks for commenting!

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  10. I love your Audrey Hepburn poster in your office. I'm sure it helped inspire you as you brought your character to life. Here's my rated-G question:
    Did the monkeys smell bad? I know they were button cute...just wondering.

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  11. Lol Jillebeans. Omigod I just laughed so hard seriously. The monkeys probably thought I smelled bad. It was like a gazillion degrees out and my hair looked like a freakin' bushwoman's. Not one of my more glamorous moments. So, not sure if they stunk worse or I did. Thanks for the laugh!

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  12. Awesome office!! Why weren't Frankie or Quigley in the photo? I know they like to be part of your writing as well - are they camera shy? Love the book titles - want to know how Frankie and Quigley did with their translation assignment! (And didn't I hear somewhere you were fluent in French?) Wishing you every success!

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  13. Thanks Grainne! I know, I couldn't get the cats to sit still in the picture. I tried to get Frankie to sit on my desk but he wouldn't stop playing with the froufrou fur on my purple lamp. I honestly think their French is better than mine nowadays. I need to jet off to Paris and practice up. Thanks for stopping!

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  14. I love to ask authors how do they get started writing? It seems so daunting to sit down and write a novel. Do you plan it out or do you just start flowing and make it up as you go along

    fencingromein at hotmail dot com

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  15. Great question Shannon. It is daunting and downright paralyzing sometimes to sit at my computer staring at a blank page. I've heard several authors state a bad page is better than a blank page and they're right. I'm a pantster so I don't plot in advance. When I start a new book I challenge myself to write the first few pages as fast as I can. I don't care if I keep them or toss them out. I just need something on the pages so the blank pages aren't glaring back at me.

    I've only written two books where I kept the first opening line that came to my head. The YA book I mentioned in my post. "I couldn't believe I was spending my summer vacation surrounded by dead people." And an upcoming novel called Thinking Outside the Box. "Planning themed funerals was going to be the death of Cassidy Baldwin."

    Thanks for asking! (Also, if you are the Shannon who commented on my Oct 29 blog at Coffee Time please let me know you won a copy of my book.)

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  16. Two comments:
    1) You better invite me to your Monte Carlo retreat because you WILL be a NYT bestselling author.
    2) I don't see a phote of me on your office desk! lol

    Absolutely can't wait to read your next book! Perhaps it will involve monkeys?

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  17. Nancy, are you posting under some secret identity? Don't mean to out you. Of course you are invited to Monte Carlo. I'm going to need someone to share living expenses with me. :-) Do I have a pic of you? Not sure about monkeys in the next book. Monica would have loved a pet monkey in this book.

    Thanks for stopping by!

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  18. What a fun post! Loved the picture of you with the monkeys. I'd probably have been worried about getting a disease, too. I want to know if your cats started speaking French yet.

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  19. Love the picture! Have you checked to see if there is an immunization you can have before returning to Thailand in case of another monkey attack?

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  20. Edie, believe me I was worried about the disease once I stopped them from crawling all over me. My cats and I have really been slacking off on the French for the past several years. I really need to go to Paris and practice up. But Frankie and Quigley don't like to fly. :-) Thanks for stopping!

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  21. Lol Mushuu, I will definitely consider a shot if I ever head back to those floating markets in Thailand. :-) Thanks for popping by!

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I'd love to hear your thoughts on today's post. Thanks for dropping by.